Fragrance allergen

Linalyl Acetate

Linalyl acetate is the acetate ester of linalool and a principal scent component of bergamot and lavender oils. It smells sweet, floral and fruity, with a pear-like bergamot character. Perfumers use it as a fresh, sweet blender, and it is also found in soaps, cleaning products and flavourings.

Formula
C12H20O2
Molar mass
196.29 g/mol
CAS
115-95-7

Where it comes from

Linalyl acetate is a principal component of bergamot and lavender oils, and ScenTree reports 22 to 36 per cent in expressed bergamot oil. PubChem also lists clary sage and lemon oils. Commercial supplies are usually made by reacting linalool with acetic acid or acetic anhydride, and natural grades can be isolated from essential oils by fractional distillation.

Smell and use

Sweet and floral-fruity, recalling bergamot and pear, with a lavender side. Another listing gives a bergamot-lavender odour.

Widely used as a fresh and sweet blender. It suits bergamot, lilac, lavender, linden, neroli and ylang-ylang notes, and chypre fragrances in particular. Because it is fairly stable toward alkali, it also works in soaps and detergents. Outside perfume it is used in cleaning products, cosmetics, oil paints and flavouring extracts.

On the label

Named on 12% of the 6,851 perfume ingredient lists we hold (852 perfumes).

EU
Annex III, entry 337. Must be named above 0.001% in leave-on products (0.01% rinse-off).
Great Britain
Not on Great Britain's list. It came to the EU list in 2023 and a GB label need not name it.

The SCCS opinion SCCS/1459/11 places linalyl acetate in its lowest band (up to 10 reported positive test reactions) when non-oxidised and in the next band when oxidised, and notes that it oxidises on exposure to air. Regulation (EU) 2023/1545 added it to the labelled allergen list. Only a minority of company notifications to ECHA (12.2 per cent) include H317. One industry source says Great Britain has not adopted this expansion.

A list that does not name it does not prove it is absent: brands only have to name it above the threshold.

Frequency by concentration

  • Eau de parfum 13% of 4,898
  • Eau de toilette 7% of 1,227
  • Extrait 12% of 341
  • Parfum 40% of 191
  • Cologne 3% of 108
  • Body spray 29% of 42
  • Other 22% of 27

Share of the perfumes we hold a list for, in each concentration.

Named alongside

Share of the lists naming Linalyl Acetate that also name each of these.

Perfumes whose box names it

Common questions

What does linalyl acetate smell like?

Sweet and floral-fruity, recalling bergamot and pear, with a lavender side. It is a principal component of bergamot and lavender oils.

Is linalyl acetate natural or synthetic?

Both. It occurs naturally in bergamot and lavender oils, and natural grades can be isolated from them. Commercial supplies are usually made by reacting linalool with acetic acid or acetic anhydride.

Why is linalyl acetate on my perfume label?

Regulation (EU) 2023/1545 widened the list of fragrance allergens that must be named, and linalyl acetate is on it. Brands must show it once it exceeds 0.001 per cent in leave-on products or 0.01 per cent in rinse-off ones.